67% of first-time home buyers are millennials and with national home prices increasing 18.1% year over year in August (Corelogic, 2021), some are finding themselves being squeezed out of the market. Despite millennials carrying large student debts, this new crop of buyers are tech savvy entrepreneurs that are wanting to do it all and do it all their way.

 

The word “millennial” is so broad, and I find it difficult to pigeonhole them as a group. Technically millennials are defined as those born between 1980 and 1995. They are really, however, split into two age group categories in my mind. There are the young millennials, aged 25-32, and the elder millennials, aged 33-40. The elder millennials have gone through a rough time with September 11, the Great Recession of 2007, and now the COVID-19 pandemic. To make matters worse, they find themselves competing at every turn for the home of their dreams with multiple offers, bidding against cash offers, and the more established wealth of Generation X. 

 

With the onset of the pandemic, we saw the reversal of millennials flocking to urban areas to suburban ones. And, of course, what does this mean? Single family homes. They want to work from anywhere and really “live.” They want to enjoy life and do things on their terms. They want to experience the outdoor life, look at the Walking Score, and find a spot that satisfies their yearning to work remotely. They are also very environmentally and morally conscience. They are engaging online initially, 98% of the time, and doing their due diligence in research. They are using social media to get to know their agents first and look at homes and neighborhoods. 

 

For me, millennials are the ones changing the way realtors do business. They are doing things differently and initially looking at properties and depending on their agents as a sort of concierge service to go and vet the properties. Facetiming millennials to show them a property and educate them throughout the process of buying a house, sight unseen, has become the new norm. It is fun to see the change in the market, even if it is a little scary selling a home to someone who has never stepped foot in it.

Alison JensenNovember 11, 2021